Building Buzz Online

I'm so excited - my favorite Portland source for the latest products, fabulous boutiques, hot new restaurants, events and other must-know insider scoop just expanded to Seattle. Seattle Picks comes out every Friday and will no doubt be just as popular in the Emerald City as it is in Portland. If you do business in Seattle be sure to “pitch” yourself to the savvy Seattle Picks scouts and maybe they’ll feature you in an upcoming edition. Promoting your store, product or event to hip Seattleites through Seattle Picks is a great way to get your business in front of thousands of potential customers. Pitch yourself through the online submission form or sign up for Seattle Picks by visiting Seattle Picks online.

And if you’re not in Seattle? Scout out similar city guides and online resources for hip happenings in your city or market specific ones for your target market like Savvy Mommy for the baby/mama market. Send them information on your products, pitch yourself for an online gift guide or tie your business to an upcoming holiday. Websites, blogs and e-newsletters can be an important tool for driving traffic to your business.

Give Your Brand Wings

A new BrandBloom client just received their first product mention in a national magazine. Instantly they went from small mom-and-pop shop to juggling the hundreds of orders that poured in and continue to pour in.

Are you ready for your product to take flight? If you have a cutting-edge product, a unique business or a hot topic you’d like to receive national media coverage for, this opportunity is for you. A top freelance reporter is looking for story ideas for magazines such as Redbook, Parade, Parents magazine, History Channel magazine, Psychology Today, Health magazine, Family Circle, Self, Marie Claire, Wired magazine, Time, etc. If you’d like us to help you score ink in these publications and other top national magazines, contact us today. We’re ready to help you launch your business to the next level.

Why is Your Competitor in the News Again?

Last week BrandBloom clients were interviewed for articles in Forbes, “O” The Oprah magazine, Cottage Living, The Oregonian and Parenting magazine. Although some of these interviews were for feature stories exclusively on our clients, some of them were expert interviews because of the insight our clients could provided on the article topic.

Although a feature on your company is ideal (and we can help you pitch and land feature stories on your company or products), being interviewed and quoted as an expert because of your experience with the subject, is also a great opportunity to obtain credibility and gain attention for your business. If you’re looking to acquire investment funds, grow your business through big-time strategic partnerships or position a small business as the local leader – being quoted in major media outlets can help you be taken seriously and give you an edge over your competition.

Don’t let your competitors be the ones always in the news– call us today and tell us about you and your business. Our exclusive Expert Placement Program is FREE to join and the benefit you’ll receive will help launch your business to the next level.

Calling all Baby and Boomer Product Companies

Here's a great opportunity to pitch your baby, parenting or boomer products for a national magazine article.

New Products for Parents/Baby Boomers -- Freelance writer is looking for new, hip products for two articles, one targeted to parents and the other for aging baby boomers. New inventions would be great. Products on the market must be new (less than one year), different and useful. Over-the-top is good. Article will be submitted to parenting magazines and possibly AARP or AARP Bulletin. Due Apr 02, 2007.

If you want to submit your product(s) contact me today at twibel@brandbloom.com

Free Tips for Pitching Harvard Business Review

Want to Score Ink in a Top Business Pub?

If you're an executive or business owner looking to build credibility and position yourself as a leader, you'll want to take advantage of opportunities to land media coverage in a publication commonly referred to as the management bible - The Harvard Business Review (circulation 242,761).

MarketingSherpa is offering tips and advice for pitching HBR in an online article free for the next 7 days. You can read the article by visiting: http://www.marketingsherpa.com/article.html?ident=23369

The Inc. 5000 - Here's Your Chance

So You've Built a Successful Company?

Here's your chance to stand out from your competition

and receive some recognition.

Inc. Magazine, the go-to sources for American entrepreneurs, and one of the top business magazines for the past 26 years, is expanding its Inc. 500 list of America’s fastest-growing private companies to become the Inc. 5,000. To be eligible, companies must be U.S.-based and independent, with four full calendar years of revenue generation. Companies must provide their revenue figures for 2003 and 2006 to qualify for consideration. The deadline for submitting the qualification form is April 15.

Enter online at http://www.inc.com/inc5000/index.html

Why Should I Enter?

The top 500 companies will appear in the September 2007 issue of Inc. Magazine, with profiles of each based on CEO interviews. All companies included on the Inc. 5,000 will be listed on Inc.com with a business description and invited to the Inc. 500 conference in Chicago at the Hilton on September 6-8, 2007. There is no cost to enter and all marketing and publicity benefits are free.

Who Will Be Considered?

Those companies based in the United States, independent and privately held (not a subsidiary or a division of a larger firm), that have been generating sales since the first week of 2003 at the latest.

When is the Deadline?

Deadline for submitting the basic qualification form has been extended to April 15, 2007.
How do I Apply?Simply submit the preliminary Inc. 5000 application form before April 15, 2007. Those firms that appear to be eligible for the list will receive, as soon as possible, an e-mail with a link to an online password-protected Secondary Application, which will ask for more specific details about your company.

Are you an expert?

Establish yourself as an expert and watch your business soar.

Yesterday a client was interviewed by USA Today Weekend for an article related to his industry. By being quoted in the article as the expert on the topic, he not only will gain national exposure for his business, but he’s building a platform for himself as the leading expert in his industry. A powerful tool for building trust, credibility and ultimately his business.

One of the best ways to build credibility for yourself and your business is to establish yourself as an expert. Whether you’re a professional organizer, a CPA, an attorney or a retail business owner - whatever your profession- chances are you know a thing or two about your industry. By sharing your expertise and insight with reporters looking for sources for current stories they are working on, you’ll build your status as an expert, gain media attention for your business and standout from your competition as the leader in your industry.

At BrandBloom we learn about hundreds of opportunities a day for experts like you. Reporters are looking for industry leaders to comment on breaking news and all kinds of topics from cooking to parenting. If you’re an expert, sign up for our Expert Placement Program and we’ll contact you when we have an opportunity that matches your expertise. You’ll pay only if you are interviewed by the media.

Email us today a short paragraph summarizing your business , background and areas of expertise: info@brandbloom.com.

Media Opportunities

Here are just a couple of the hundreds of media opportunities I learned about today.

Are you prefect for either of these opportunities? Contact me today to learn how to pitch yourself for these and other similar national media opportunities.

Hot New Products for Women
First Wives World Radio "Hot Product of Week": This segment will feature the hottest new products for women. This radio & video broadcast will be a live event held every Wednesday afternoon in the window area of The Heartland Brewery at The Empire State Building in New York City. Guests must be available *in person*. This broadcast will be featured on FirstWivesWorld.com, a social network and online community being created by and for the 40 million divorced women in the U.S. to address their unique lifestyle needs and desires.

International Home & Housewares Show Stories
Reporter needs sources for two stories for a top U.S. daily. One is on healthy kitchens and the second one is on true innovations that offer outstanding photo potential at the International Home & Housewares Show in Chicago, March 11-13. Also looking for leads on sustainable and environmental housewares.

Generate National Media Attention for Your Products

NYC Holiday Gift Fair Offers Opportunities

for Major Publicity

I’m thrilled to be representing three wonderful clients at the first annual Holiday Gift Guide Show this June in New York City. The Gift Guide Show was created as a way for New Product Editors and those editors/TV producers in charge of selecting the cool, new products you see featured in consumer magazines and on shows like NBC’s The Today Show, to come and see the latest and best products in the top 50 consumer categories.

The one-day intensive, media-only, show will allow me and my PR team and to present and showcase just launched products from three of my best clients: Simply Silhouettes, Havenhill Lavender and Retro Eclectro. We’ll be presenting in the bath/body, culinary, house wares, greeting card and fine art print categories.

The exposure and opportunity to get up-front and close with 100-150 of the most influential magazines editors and producers including media from outlets such as “O” The Oprah Magazine, the New York Times, Redbook and InStyle, is an incredible opportunity. I look forward to reporting back on the great results the show is sure to have for my clients.

And if you’re in the gift industry or create a product for consumers that you want to build buzz for, contact me to talk about how you can take advantage of opportunities like this and maximize your chances of major media coverage.

Want to Drive Online Business?

Here's a great tip from the PublicityHound

Publicity Hounds who want to create a huge presence online should be writing book reviews and posting them at places like Amazon.com and EzineArticles.com, the giant online articles directory.

Christopher Knight, who owns EzineArticles.com, says that last month, articles in the Book Reviews category received seven times the amount of traffic per article than articles in the main category of Shopping & Product Reviews, and two times more traffic than the average of all articles in the same main category.

He offers a list of helpful tips on how to write book reviews at his blog at http://tinyurl.com/yvmrcb

Why are book reviews so powerful? For several reasons.

People who buy books read reviews to determine whether they should spend time and money on certain titles. Also, if your review includes relevant keywords, the search engines will find them. That means people who don't know you will find your review and, if they like what they read, they might end up at your website.

Don Mitchell and Randy Gilbert have turned Amazon.com into a veritable goldmine of leads by writing book reviews and posting all kinds of other information there.

"How to Make Amazon a River of Gold (for Authors, Speakers and Consultants)" explains their step-by-step process, and you can follow in their footsteps, even if you aren't a published author.
It's available as a CD or an electronic transcript that you can download and be reading as soon as your order has been approved.
Read more about what you'll learn at http://tinyurl.com/7u76e

Small business owners and entrepreneurs can get thousands of dollars in free publicity by following the tips, tricks and tools, courtesy of Joan Stewart, The Publicity Hound®. She's a former newspaper editor, a small business owner AND she was tapped by Entrepreneur.com as its public relations expert. Check out her educational tools for small business owners by clicking here

Be Featured in INC. Magazine: Young Entrepreneurs Wanted

Do you know a rising business star under the age of 30?

Inc. Magazine is looking for America's coolest, most dynamic, and most promising young entrepreneurs -- and they want to hear from you. Click here to to nominate an entrepreneur for the annual 30 Under 30 list.

The deadline for nominations is February 28, 2007.

Opportunity to Pitch Your Product to Country Living

Here's a Great PR Opportunity for Women Entreprenurs:

Gain insight. Get inspired. Be discovered.

Join Country Living Magazine as we celebrate the women who “bank on their bliss” with a half-day seminar series that will inspire, inform and entertain.

Attendees who choose to participate in the Pitch Your Product to Country Living program will receive an application form in the mail, after registration. You must have an existing product or service, and be able to produce, supply and accommodate a large number of requests, should your product be featured in Country Living. In the event of overwhelming demand or if product does not meetcriteria, you will be issued a $15 refund. Full ticket price for the event will not be refunded. A limited number of Pitch Your Product to Country Living spots are available, so reserve your place now!

For criteria, visit clcomfortzone.com.

To register call: 800.337.2502 Space is limited.

The event agenda:

lunch with a leader (12:00-1:30pm)
Enjoy a delicious boxed lunch while Country Living Editor-in-Chief Nancy Soriano
interviews our special guest, Barbara Baekgaard, one of the country’s leading
women entrepreneurs and Co-Founder of Vera Bradley.

ladies who launch panel discussion (2:00-3:30pm)
Moderated by Victoria Colligan and Beth Schoenfeldt of the acclaimed networking
group, Ladies Who Launch, this panel will bring together several of their “Masters
in Launching™” experts, who will share their knowledge and answer your
questions about launching a business. Scheduled speakers include: Tina Hedges
& Beth Ann Catalano, TWIST new.brand.venture, Janelle Elms, best selling author
of several Ebay books and Ebay University instructor, Kim Lavine, entrepreneur and
author of Mommy Millionaire, Kristy Amy, OnMark Solutions (web marketing), and
Nance Schick, attorney.

2007 country living women entrepreneurs
panel discussion (4:00-5:30pm) and reception (5:30-6:30pm)
Hear inspiring stories and anecdotes from women business owners who will be
featured in Country Living’s March 2007 Women Entrepreneurs issue. The panel
will conclude with an audience Q&A session and a wine and cheese reception.
special opportunity!

pitch your product to country living*
Country Living is pleased to offer the chance for attendees to pitch their existing
product or service to a panel of Country Living editors and special guest
entrepreneurs, for the chance to have it featured in a future issue of the magazine.
This special product review will take place the morning of the event, prior to the
Lunch with a Leader session. (* Requires additional registration fee. See below
for more details.)

SATURDAY, MARCH 10TH, 2007
Chicago Marriott Downtown
540 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois
registration fee: $65 includes: seminars, boxed luncheon, reception and gift bag
$80 includes: all the above + Pitch Your Product to Country Living opportunity

Are you ready to shine?

Have you ever turned on the news or picked up a newspaper and been surprised -- or jealous -- to find a profile on your biggest competitor?

Perhaps you thought it didn't matter and that as long as you continue doing a good job, clients will find you through word of mouth?

But what's the point of doing a good job or having an excellent product if you're not telling people about it and building on your achievements?

By showcasing your success, you'll rise above your competition, build powerful credibility while increasing profits along the way.

The BrandBloom Buzz

Welcome to The BrandBloom Buzz

Here you'll find tips, tricks and lots of ideas for generating publicity for your product or business.